Avondale
Brilliant_Rock
- Joined
- Oct 31, 2021
- Messages
- 1,643
So this story begins last autumn although I didn't really know it back then, but you could say that's where the roots are. Because if that hadn't happened, this ring wouldn't exist today either.
Last autumn a beautiful spessartite pendant belonging to a fellow PSer was in search of a new home, and I was lucky enough to be selected as its new custodian. The pendant successfully made the journey across the pond and ever since then has been one of my signature pieces and has been stealing looks left and right (hellooo?, my eyes are up here!
)
The problem, if you could call it that, was that it was made in yellow gold, and I mostly own white metals. The few yellow gold pieces I own are sentimental gifts and inherited pieces. Not to mention none of them had even a speck of orange. So it was obvious what I needed - a yellow gold ring with a spessartite stone to go with my lovely pendant.
Well this summer inspiration struck. I fell for the Lily ring by Cecile Raley Designs. Crushed hard on it, like a hormonal teenager. The design is flowery and allows for a lot of colour, which in turn allowed for my obsession to take over. After downloading, cutting and editing several dozen images, which resulted in 12 different variants of the ring, then bothering anyone and everyone who would listen to help me to narrow them down to two or three options, I finally made the jump and wrote to Yvonne.
Many here have worked with Yvonne previously and won't be at all surprised to read that the process was very pleasant and smooth. She helped me narrow my options down, advised me which colour combination looked best to her eyes, and sourced a spectacular spess to match the one I already have (if you're not impressed with that - consider, she did that only by photo).
Honestly, the entire process was so much fun - even the part where I was terribly stuck on choosing between two options for 2mm stones. I went as far as to enlist the help of the entire CS section in order to make that decision. You see, for many people, mainly those living in the US, it's a valid option to have stones shipped to you first, make your selection with your own eyes, and then move forward with the design. I, on the other hand, only had photos to work with. In a situation such as this it's a blessing to be able to trust the eye of the vendor.
The ring was ready at the end of August but only finally reached me yesterday. The local partnered carrier and their customs representation division nearly drove me mad in the process. Luckily all of this faded away when I opened the box to find this:
The ring is made in 14k yellow gold, to match my pendant. The centre stone is a 5mm untreated spessartite from Tanzania, and it is surrounded my 3mm minor oil Zambian emeralds and 2mm old stock untreated Burmese jedi spinels. All have matching brilliant cuts.
(Yes, those are lego flowers.
)
The spess Yvonne sourced is amazing. It is vibrant, and glowing, and neon. It's also amazingly clear and so crystalline. That doesn't translate very well in photos, so you'll have to trust my word. Tanzanian spessartite, for its amazing colour, is usually full of sugar, and this one tiny baby just isn't. I can see the difference very clearly when comparing it with my pendant (which is considered a generally clean stone, mind you).
In any case, the two are basically perfectly matched.
I must say I'm very glad with the way the ring turned out. It's better than what I hoped for. All colours are vibrant and hold their own, but they don't overpower each other. Instead, they match harmoniously in... well, pretty much everything. Daylight, sunlight, low light, it doesn't matter. They always glow. Even if I stick the ring under the desk, they all still glow.
The jedis in particular make me unusually happy for their tiny size. I was initially a little bit worried that they would be distracting and pull attention away, but instead, maybe because they're so small, after all, they actually contribute as an extra focal point to the design.
Here are the rest of the photos. @mellowyellowgirl I have not forgotten my promise. I have to go to the store and find some oranges first, but I plan to get it done soon.
Last autumn a beautiful spessartite pendant belonging to a fellow PSer was in search of a new home, and I was lucky enough to be selected as its new custodian. The pendant successfully made the journey across the pond and ever since then has been one of my signature pieces and has been stealing looks left and right (hellooo?, my eyes are up here!
)The problem, if you could call it that, was that it was made in yellow gold, and I mostly own white metals. The few yellow gold pieces I own are sentimental gifts and inherited pieces. Not to mention none of them had even a speck of orange. So it was obvious what I needed - a yellow gold ring with a spessartite stone to go with my lovely pendant.
Well this summer inspiration struck. I fell for the Lily ring by Cecile Raley Designs. Crushed hard on it, like a hormonal teenager. The design is flowery and allows for a lot of colour, which in turn allowed for my obsession to take over. After downloading, cutting and editing several dozen images, which resulted in 12 different variants of the ring, then bothering anyone and everyone who would listen to help me to narrow them down to two or three options, I finally made the jump and wrote to Yvonne.
Many here have worked with Yvonne previously and won't be at all surprised to read that the process was very pleasant and smooth. She helped me narrow my options down, advised me which colour combination looked best to her eyes, and sourced a spectacular spess to match the one I already have (if you're not impressed with that - consider, she did that only by photo).
Honestly, the entire process was so much fun - even the part where I was terribly stuck on choosing between two options for 2mm stones. I went as far as to enlist the help of the entire CS section in order to make that decision. You see, for many people, mainly those living in the US, it's a valid option to have stones shipped to you first, make your selection with your own eyes, and then move forward with the design. I, on the other hand, only had photos to work with. In a situation such as this it's a blessing to be able to trust the eye of the vendor.
The ring was ready at the end of August but only finally reached me yesterday. The local partnered carrier and their customs representation division nearly drove me mad in the process. Luckily all of this faded away when I opened the box to find this:
The ring is made in 14k yellow gold, to match my pendant. The centre stone is a 5mm untreated spessartite from Tanzania, and it is surrounded my 3mm minor oil Zambian emeralds and 2mm old stock untreated Burmese jedi spinels. All have matching brilliant cuts.
(Yes, those are lego flowers.
)The spess Yvonne sourced is amazing. It is vibrant, and glowing, and neon. It's also amazingly clear and so crystalline. That doesn't translate very well in photos, so you'll have to trust my word. Tanzanian spessartite, for its amazing colour, is usually full of sugar, and this one tiny baby just isn't. I can see the difference very clearly when comparing it with my pendant (which is considered a generally clean stone, mind you).
In any case, the two are basically perfectly matched.
I must say I'm very glad with the way the ring turned out. It's better than what I hoped for. All colours are vibrant and hold their own, but they don't overpower each other. Instead, they match harmoniously in... well, pretty much everything. Daylight, sunlight, low light, it doesn't matter. They always glow. Even if I stick the ring under the desk, they all still glow.
The jedis in particular make me unusually happy for their tiny size. I was initially a little bit worried that they would be distracting and pull attention away, but instead, maybe because they're so small, after all, they actually contribute as an extra focal point to the design.
Here are the rest of the photos. @mellowyellowgirl I have not forgotten my promise. I have to go to the store and find some oranges first, but I plan to get it done soon.
I love the whole suite. The colors make me happy as a perfect *pop*.
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